Can-filling machine



w. T.. GUILD.

CAN Fl-LLING MACHIN h APPLICATION FILED NOV- 29,1920.

Patented June 28-, 1921.

4 SHEETS'SH EET I.

WT. Ga

W. T. GUILD.

CAN FILLING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 29, 1920.

1,353,105. PatentedJfine-28, 1921.

4 SHEETS'SHEET 2.

W1. Guild yids fliibor'ngs m:..

W. T. GUILD. CAN FILLINGMACHINE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 29, 1920- I r 1,383,105. v PatentedJune 28, 1921-.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

W7: 1'. Guild," yhisflw y W. T. GUILD.

CAN FILLING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILITID NOV- ;9, l920-- ,3 1 Patented June 28, 1921.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE...

WILLIS "r. GUILD, or JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI.

I speed.

CAN-FILLING MACHINE.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

it known that 1, Trims T. GUILD, a citizen of the United States, residing in Jackson, in the county of Hinds and State of Mississippi, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Can-Filling ll/TflClllIlGS, of which the following is aspecification.

' This invention relates to can filling machines of the kind constructed to automatically fill cans with vegetables and other sub stances. 'Heretofore, so far as I am aware, no machine of this general class has been especially constructed to fill cans with cooked, peeled and otherwise prepared sweet potatoes which are of a soft, pasty and stringy nature and require particular treatment. This work, as far as I am aware, has'heretofore'been done by hand.

According to invention, a mass of cooked, peeled and otherwise prepared potatoes is placed in a hopper which delivers to a feed screw in turn forcing the mass into a chamber in which operates a vertically reciprocating mold-filling plunger or ram which forces the mass contained in the chamber into a mold where it packs the charge in quantities of definite size and weight. The mold is carried by a lever mounted to oscillate about 'a vertical axis and the mold is moved horizontally from a position under the filling chamber into a position above a can carrier and below a can-filling plunger which is operated to force the charge of material out of the mold into a canbelow it. The cans are automatically fed step by step beneath the can filling plunger and the mold is moved at suitable intervals from a position below the mold-filling plunger to a position above the can and beneath the can-filling plunger.

' The mechanism is so arranged as to operate in unison and harmoniously at high The mold oscillates between upper and lower frame plates and a definite amount of material is taken by the mold at each mold filling operation. The mold is provided with an extension or wing which closes the end of the mold-filling chamber when the mold is moved away from it. The metal parts which would otherwise come in contact with the prepared potatoes are lined with tin to comply with Government regulations and the plungers fit the mold and the cylinders in which they operate with the greatest accuracy, so that the cylinders are inold-filling plunger.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented J 11116 28, 1921.

Application filed November as, 1920. Serial No. 427,186.

kept clean during the entire operationof the mechanism. y r In the accompanying drawings I Figure 1 is a front elevation of a'can fillm machine embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the right-hand end of the machine. 7

Fig. 3 is'a top plan view. I. Fig. 4 shows a vertical section onthe line 44 of Fig. 1. p i I Fig. 5 is a similar section on the line 5+5. Fig. 6 shows a section on the line 6-6of Fig. 1. Y

7-7. Fig. 8 shows a horizontal section on the line 88 of Fig. 1. r

F g. 9 is a detail view :of yielding devices forming part of the connecting rod ofithe a similar section on the line i The main supporting but preferably it comprises a bed plate and side members'each consisting of a front vertical member a and a rear inclined memframe ofthe ma- 7 chme may be of any suitable constructlon,

her a connected at suitable intervals by cross pieces a The side .members are firmly secured tothe bed plate in any suitable way. A cross piece a connects theltwo side mern bers of the frame near their upper ends and serves to support parts of the mechanism as will be hereinafter described. ,The upper ends of the parts a, a of each side member are brought together andsupport bearings b for a horizontal shaftrB carrying a drive pulley B andfour cams C, 0 ,6 ,0 which v are vertically arranged and grooved in their sides as indicated. spectivelyv on the mold-filling plunger, the can-filling plunger, the mold, oscillating devices, and the can-feeding mechanism.

A cylinder D contains a chamber which receivesthe material from a hopper E arranged in rear of it. This hopper delivers to a horizontally arranged feed screw F These cams operate re: i

which forces the material into a chute'g which delivers to the cylinder D below the mold-filling plunger when the latter is in its uppermost position. The screw is driven by a pulley F and has its bearingslat f, fv as indicated.

The cylinderD is supported by a horizontally arranged table or plate H, inturn supported on posts 7L overa'plate K located some distance below :it h indicates a bracket or brace for. holding the plate plate K,

teady and 7a shows a v The hopper E and parts immediately associated therewith are supported on a brace bar E. extending from the bed plate up- The piston or plunger G is connected by a rod 9 with the cam O by means of the groove and roller connection 9 shown in Fig. 7; Theupper'endof the rod g 1s guided in asuitable guide bracketL secured to the cross piece a Preferably the plunger rod 9 ismade in sections and has interposed between its upper and lowerends yielding devices ,111 order that the material operated upon by the plunger may be r given' a' yielding pressure when the'mold is'being filled. V V

The plate ortable'H extends'to the right andsupportsia guide oylinderf'M in which operates acam-fillingplunger N,-the rod n of which is guided in a bracket L vsecured to ,the cross piece a and said rod has aroller and groove connection with the cam C as indicatedatm The mold Q is located between the plates I Hfand K andris adapted to move from a position beneaththe 'mold fillingplunger to a position beneath the can-filling plunger.-

The mold hashan opening through it as' indicated in Fig. 7. His carried by a'lever Pfpivotally mounted'fat-p on a supportP rising. from" the bed plate.- The plate Hha's an opening through it corresponding in size to thediameter of the chamber D and the diameter .ofjthe mold,"but the plateK is closed beneath the mold" while being open v beneath thejc'anfillin'g plunger; The mold has anextension o which at times closes the openingin 'the plate H beneath the plunger D."'o iindicates'braces for the extension or @frame Q3 andconnected' by a short link 9 wing 0 There'ar portion ofthe lever; P is connected 'by ashort linkgto a rodQreciproeating in'a guide 9 on top of the supporting with a horizontally arranged bell crank lever R pivotally mounted at '1" one support r. The bell crank lever R is connectedat s .by a loose joint with a horizontally arranged link S in turn connected at s with a bell cra'nk lever S pivoted to move about a ".horizontalaxis in bearings on topofa supporting frame S? rising from the bed plate. The bell'crank lever S is joined at t to a vertically disposed rod T guidedin j the bracket L and havinga roller and groove connection, 25 with i the: camfGt; this mechanism themold 'isoscillated back and forth from the mold-filling chamber -D to plunger 'an d vice versa. r i The can. carrier 'U comprises a horizonfthe guidin chamber F of the can filling ,tally' arranged circular frame, the arms u of hi h a a r g d to ge te similar brace for the through an inclined chute or guide way V inanysuitable way. The can carrler 1s so operated step by step as to carry the cans oneat'a time beneath the can-filling plunger Nlto receive material from the mold 'atthe proper time. I I

The can carrier is supported at W and revolves about a vertical axis. It carries a beveled pinion w engaging a corresponding pinion w on a horizontal shaft W mounted in bearings 1 0 The shaft carries a ratchet wheel engaging a pawl 2 carried by an arm 2 pivoted on the shaft VV' andconnected by a link" 2 with a connecting rod Z having a groove and roller connection e withthe cam' C"; The rod Z is guided in a guide bracket Lt attached to the 'cross piece {at The mechanism is so operated as to give a step bystep movement to the can carrier in the mannerdescribed, a canbeing moved to a'pos'ition beneath the can-- filling plungerjust' before said plunger is moved downward to force a charge of ma- 'terial' from the mold. The cans are guided into engagement with the can carrier by suitable guides and the cansare delivered when filled to anysuitable receiver, as to an endless belt V which is adapted-to convey the filled cans to'other apparatus. V

-A's is well known when sweet potatoesiare prepared for being canned, they are usually steamed sufiiciently to enable the skins to be removed. Inasmuch as some of the potatoes are quite large, as much *as six inches in diameter,and-some are very small, sa'y'two 'inchesin diameter andinasmuch as yams are consideredl the same as sweet potatoes or their equivalents, and as these are sometimes as large as eight-inches in diameter, .the

upon bythe screw which mixes the large and small parts of the massand' to some extent crushes the larger pieces so that the material when it"entersthefilling chamber is in a mashed condition although there are often fs%ilne solid pieces, but this is, not objection- The mold-filling plunger operates on'material of this sort in the filling chamber, which should contain below the filling plun- Therefore, it is customary to ger, when the latter is lifted, enough or somewhatmorethan enough to fill a can. When the mold filling plunger descends it forces the mass intothe mold and completely fills it, the mold chamber being asbefore mentioned exactly of the same dimensions as r -fil et Th Pl r are l? fills the filling chamber so as to wipe it clean at every operation, and as indicated in the drawings, the chamber D as well as the mold chamber is lined with tin to comply with Federal and State regulations.

After the mold is thus filled, it is swung over to a position above the can carrier and above a can mounted therein and just below the can-filling plunger. The can-filling plunger descends at the proper time and it has a movement sufiicient to force all the material out of the mold chamber into a can so that the material completely fills the can up to its very top edge. The can thus filled is removed by the can carrier from beneath the canfilling plunger and may be delivered to an endless belt carrier as shown in the drawings. It will be observed by reference to the drawings that not only is the mold and its filling chamber lined, but the hop per, the feed screw, and all other parts which come in contact with the material being canned are properly lined, preferably with tin.

The potatoes when they are thus packed in the cans are not sufficiently cooked. After the cans are filled, they are passed through a heater which drives the air out of the mass of potatoes. This is done before the caps or covers are put on the cans. After being thus heated, the cans are capped and sealed and then they are again steamed sufiiciently to thoroughly cook the potatoes. This is the usual process and forms no part of my invention.

The details of construction shown for operating the parts have been found to be efficient, but may be somewhat varied. The novel features of my invention are hereinafter specified.

I claim as my invention:

1. A can filling machine comprising a mold filling chamber open at the side, a vertically reciprocating plunger operating in said chamber, a mold mounted to oscillate in an are below said mold filling chamber, a can carrier, a vertically reciprocating plunger operating in said mold to force material therefrom into a can, means for operat ing the two plungers, means for swinging the mold from a position under the mold filling chamber to a position above a can in the carrier and below the can filling plunger, and means for giving a step-by-step movement to the can carrier.

2. A can filling machine comprising a mold filling chamber open at the side, means for forcing material through the side opening of the mold filling chamber, a vertically reciprocating plunger operating in said chamber across said side opening, a mold mounted to oscillate in an are below said mold filling chamber, a can carrier, a vertically reciprocating plunger operating in said mold to force material therefrom into a can, means for moving the mold filling plunger to alternately open and close the 'sideopening in the mold filling chamber and ing material from the hopper into the mold filling chamber below the plunger, a rotary can carrier, means for delivering cans thereto, a can filling plunger, means for moving the can carrier step-by-step to present cans one at a time below the can filling plunger to receive material from the mold, and means for oscillating the mold from a position beneath the mold filling chamber to a position above a can in the carrier and below the can filling plunger.

4.. A can filling machine comprising a mold filling chamber, a vertically reciprocat ing plunger operating therein, a mold mounted to move in an are below the mold filling chamber and having an extension or wing adapted to close the lower end of said chamber when the mold is withdrawn therefrom, a can carrier, a plunger adapted to force material from the mold into a can, means for operating the two plungers, means for swinging the mold from a position under the mold filling chamber to a position above a can in the carrier, and below the can filling plunger, and means for giving a step by-step movement to the can carrier.

5. A can filling machine, comprising a main frame horizontally arranged, plates supported by the frame and spaced apart,

a mold-filling chamber supported by the upper plate, a plunger operating in said chamber, a mold mounted to move in an are below the mold-filling chamber and between said plates, a can carrier, a plunger adapted to force material from the mold into a can, means for operating the two plungers, means for moving the mold from a position under the mold-filling chamber to a position above a can in the carrier and below the can-filling plunger, and means for giving a step by step movement to the can carrier.

6. In a can filling machine, the combination of a main frame, a cam shaft mounted in bearings at the upper end thereof, cams on said shaft for operating the mechanism, a mold-filling plunger operatively connected with one of the cams, a can-filling plunger operatively connected with another cam, an oscilating mold adapted to move from position below the mold-filling plunger to a position above a can, connections between said mold and one of the cams on the cam shaft by means of which the mold is moved from a position below the mold-filling plunger to a position above a can and below the canfilling plunger, a can carrier mounted to turn about a vertical axis, and connections between said can carrier and one of the cams on the cam shaft by which the can carrier is moved step by step.

7. Ina can filling machine, an oscillating mold having an extension or wing, a lever mounted to turn about a vertical axis, a rod having a link connection with said lever, a 15 horizontally arranged bell crank lever connected to said rod, another bell crank lever mounted to turn about a horizontal axis and havin a link connection with the first mentioned bell crank lever, a rotary cam, and 20 connections between said cam and the sec-| 0nd mentioned bell crank lever for giving an oscillating movement to the mold.

I testimony whereof, I have hereunto sub scribed my name.

WILLIS T. GUILD. 

